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The United States has levied restrictions on a operation of four individuals and four companies accused of recruiting former Colombian soldiers to support and educate a armed faction in Sudan that Washington accuses of genocidal acts.

Operation Structure

Disclosing the measures on Tuesday, the American treasury stated the network was mostly comprised of Colombian citizens and firms.

Hundreds of ex-soldiers from Colombia have allegedly journeyed to the conflict in Sudan to fight alongside the RSF paramilitary group, a faction accused of severe violations encompassing targeted ethnic killings and mass abductions.

Revelation of Role

The involvement of Colombian fighters initially emerged the previous year, after an inquiry which found that over three hundred ex-military personnel had been recruited to fight – an revelation that prompted an unprecedented apology from Colombia’s foreign ministry.

Colombian ex-soldiers have long been considered as highly prized fighters in conflict zones due to their vast combat experience resulting from decades of civil war, knowledge of Western military gear, and elite military instruction.

Reported Actions

In the Sudanese theater, the Colombians have been accused of teaching underage fighters, taught fighters to pilot drones, and engaged in frontline combat. One source was quoted as saying that instructing minors was "horrific and irrational" but commented that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Targeted Persons

Among those sanctioned was a retired Colombian officer, a individual with dual citizenship and retired Colombian military officer based in the Dubai. The US authorities alleged he played a pivotal function in recruiting and deploying ex-military personnel to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Oliveros, was also sanctioned.

Also on the penalty list was Mateo Duque Botero, a dual national who officials alleged ran a firm implicated in managing finances and payments for the recruitment operation. "In 2024 and 2025, American entities linked to Duque engaged in numerous wire transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the official announcement stated.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz was the fourth individual to be sanctioned, with the company she managed said to have conducted financial transactions linked to Duque and his companies.

"The US once more urges foreign parties to cease providing funding and arms to the warring parties," the department stated.

Expert Analysis

Elizabeth Dickinson, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, labeled the actions as a "major" development, noting that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the proper strategy".

Furthermore, Bogotá has enacted a piece of legislation endorsing the global treaty against mercenarism, designed to limit its citizens' long history in overseas wars and transform domestic defense strategy.

A mercenary specialist, a scholar on the subject, called for greater wariness, saying that "restrictions are needed but not enough for addressing the growing mercenary trade".

"It operates in the black market and based out of the Emirates, which is difficult to penalize," he stated. The Emirati government has been widely accused of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, claims it rejects. "This trend will probably continue," he advised.